ASHLAND — Generations of love have grown at Mill Spring Farm.
A young girl named Aimee grew up hearing the stories about the farm. Her grandparents fell in love there while picking strawberries.
Years later, after ownership had passed to Lou Turchyn, Aimee asked to pick daffodils on the property, just as she did with her grandmother.
There, she found herself creating a similar story with her future husband, Lou.
“My budding love for Lou,” Aimee Turchyn said.
With more than a century of family history on the farm, Aimee and Lou Turchyn opened their doors to the public, inviting visitors to experience the serene life at Mill Spring Farm.
Mill Spring Farm opened June 6 at 807 Township Road 110 between Ashland and Nankin.
Mill Spring Farm offers seasonal flower-picking passes, house plants and handcrafted furniture. The furniture is built by a local Amish craftsman and designed by Aimee Turchyn.
Guests can browse the gift shop on the ground floor and participate in craft classes taught she teaches on the second floor. Some crafts include flower pressing, pottery bowls and resin floral jewelry.
The farm is open Wednesday through Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. It plans to stay open through sunflower season before closing when she returns to teaching in the fall.
The Turchyns hope visitors leave with more than just a craft or flowers.
“Our focus needs to be on trying to make this a beautiful and happy place, make personal connections and create a space where people can connect with one another,” Aimee Turchyn said.
Bringing their vision to life, however, would not be easy.
When Lou Turchyn bought the property, the barn was in poor condition.
“Outside of Aimee’s presence in my life, I bought this place and when I first walked into this back then, it was a scary barn. It somehow drew me to this building,” Lou said.
He consulted his friends in the construction industry, who warned him the amount of money it would cost to repair the farm is far more than what it is worth. He looked into selling it to the Amish community or the fire department to practice putting out fires.
Regardless, he wanted to keep the barn. He just didn’t know what to do with it yet.
“Until Aimee came into my life. She brought all of her ideas that she has been dreaming about this barn since she was 12 years-old,” Lou Turchyn said.
Turning the vision into reality required years of work and support from the community.
“Regarding challenges, everything was a challenge,” Lou Turchyn said.
One of their biggest obstacles in restoration involved removing a tree that supported the barn. The task required assistance from local Amish workers.
The Friends of Ohio Barns awarded the farm a grant, which covered the cost of their red oak floors. The locally sourced Ohio hardwood was milled within five miles of the barn.
Aimee Turchyn said they are very appreciative of the work and mission The Friends of Ohio Barns have. She also thanked Amish partners for their help and said Hess & Clark were major benefactors.
“My hope is that it works out, that we’re able to share this with other people, and that they’ll be respectful of our hard work and that this will become a beloved place in Ashland, just like it has been for us,” she said.
Even after renovations, characteristics of the original barn are visible throughout.
History seeps through the boards of the barn. Upstairs, visitors’ eyes are drawn to the high wooden beams of the Gothic-roof barn. Gothic roofs are rare in barn architecture because the style was only used for a short period of time. Aimee Turchyn said the design was built to withstand Midwestern winds; the barn’s original 1935 roof remains intact.
The Turchyns installed accessibility ramp to access the second floor; it was important to her everyone is welcome and can experience it all.
To incorporate their history, twine was cut for opening day instead of ribbon.
This was sentimental to Aimee Turchyn because her great-grandfather used baling twine on the farm. When Lou Turchyn arrived, remnants of twine were found all over the property. In honor of her grandfather’s birthday also being opening day, twine seemed like the perfect alternative.
The Turchyns want Mill Spring to be more than a pit stop. They hope people will take a break from social media and escape into nature.
“Kids need more wholesome places and activities, and as a teacher, I see what scrolling is doing to their focus and reading abilities,” Aimee said. “We want to provide a place for people to just be together and enjoy wholesome activities.”
Aimee and Lou have created their own memories here and now hope to give others the opportunity to experience it for themselves and appreciate it just as much as they do.
The Turchyn family has many favorite memories on the farm, but one of them is simply sitting in their chairs, listening to the birds and watching the sunset as moonlight settles over the property.
“This is it. This is our place for our souls,” Lou Turchyn said.
His wife said, “Come and experience it. It’s more than a farm. I really feel like it’s a sacred place.”
